Suarez suspension under appeal

Uruguayan striker Luis Suarez gave evidence at the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) in Lausanne, Switzerland, on Friday, after Uruguay's AUF football federation took his case to the CAS. World football's governing body, FIFA, had rejected an AUF appeal on Suarez's behalf.

Suarez signed autographs for assembled fans on his way out of the court, but made no comment to reporters before or after the hearing. The 27-year-old is currently banned from all soccer activities - even training with his new club FC Barcelona - through October 25, and for nine competitive Uruguayan international matches.

The sanction is the result of him biting Italian defender Giorgio Chiellini in Uruguay's 1-0 victory over the Azzurri at the World Cup.

Friday's closed-door hearing was expected to concern only the severity of the penalty, considering the clear video evidence of the incident and the fact that Suarez eventually conceded that he had bitten Chiellini.

"At the end of the hearing, the panel informed the parties that it will issue its decision as soon as possible, probably before the end of next week," the CAS said in a statement.

Support from players' union

The FIFPro union of world soccer players said ahead of Friday's appeal hearing that it considered the Suarez ban to be "a disproportionate response to the offense."

"The four-month ban from all football-related activity ... is unfair for Suarez as it infringes his right to work at club level," FIFPro said in a statement. It is highly unusual for a player to face a ban at club level for misbehavior in an international match, or vice-versa.

Near the end of the World Cup, FC Barcelona completed the signing of Suarez from Liverpool FC. Reports on the transfer fee varied, but stretched as high as 75 million pounds (94 million euros, $125 million). Suarez is yet to train with his new teammates, and is currently ineligible to do so until October 26, three months into Barcelona's club campaign. FIFA granted an exception to its blanket ban only to allow Suarez to undergo the mandatory medical examination necessary to complete his transfer.

Match officials missed the incident during the game and Suarez received no on-pitch penalty, but the bite was clearly captured by TV cameras. It was Suarez's third such offense; he previously faced shorter bans for biting at club level both with Liverpool and Ajax Amsterdam. FIFPro said that a more useful measure than a lengthy suspension would be obligatory therapy.

"The educative nature of the sanction mentioned by FIFA in the ruling can be much better achieved by making it partially conditional, including the obligation for Luis Suarez to receive treatment," FIFPro said.

International ban could stretch into 2016

Suarez at first disputed having bitten the Italy defender, one of the reasons FIFA cited for the severity of the ban, but then issued a formal apology to Chiellini. FIFPro also cited the magnanimous response from the bitten Chiellini, who said that he believed the Suarez ban to be "excessive," as "an important signal for the CAS panel to consider."

The players' union also said the international ban of nine competitive matches was "too strong, as it effectively equates to a two-year sanction."

Depending on how Uruguay fare in next year's Copa America in Chile, the Suarez ban could stretch up to six matches into the 2018 World Cup qualifying campaign.

"The biggest issue is the nine matches because it could mean, depending on the performance of Uruguay in the Copa America, that Suarez could be prevented from playing [for Uruguay] until 2016," said Daniel Cravo, a lawyer for Uruguay's AUF. "[That] is a long journey for a player who is already 27 years."

Suarez scored 31 Premiership goals in 33 games last season for Liverpool, winning the Premier League Golden Boot award as top scorer as the club narrowly missed out on the league title to Manchester City. He was also voted the league's best player of the season by both journalists and fellow players.

msh/jr (AFP, AP, Reuters)